BOT Meeting Highlights July 2017

July 17

East of the Cooper Regional Stadium

The Board of Trustees voted 5-2 (two absent) to terminate the contract with Carolina Park Development and build the East Cooper Stadium on the campus of Wando High School. With an all-weather playing surface and a 6,000 seat capacity, the stadium will serve be able to sporting events for Wando High School and the future Lucy Beckham High School.

The final cost analysis to build a shared stadium on the Wando High School campus is over $13 million, whereas the final cost analysis to build the stadium at the Carolina Park site was over $25 million with the need to get a variance on two Town of Mount Pleasant ordinances. The District is sincerely appreciative of the relationship with Carolina Park Development who were both extremely cooperative and instrumental in the planning of the shared stadium project and our new Carolina Park Elementary School.

Construction is expected to start in the Fall of 2017, and the stadium is expected to completed by the start of the 2018-19 school year.

The Board of Trustees approved, by a 7-0 vote (two absent), an extension (until December 2018) for the District 1 and District 2 Constituent Boards to work on the attendance zone for the proposed middle school and high school in Awendaw. The District 2 Constituent Board will be working on the attendance zone for the new Lucy Beckham High School (which will open in August 2020) throughout this school year, so the extension allows for work to be completed on that initiative.

Progressive Discipline Plan Update

Two project teams were established in December 2016 to review and revise the 2016 – 2017 Student Code of Conduct. One team reviewed the Elementary Code of Conduct and the other worked on the Secondary Code of Conduct. Each team met seven times from December 2016 to June 2017 and will continue to meet throughout the summer to finalize the Progressive Discipline Plan revisions. The team members are principals, assistant principals, teachers, and district staff. A draft version of the code of conduct was shared with the board that incorporates updates to the attendance, truancy, and homebound guidelines. The definition for Failure to Comply was altered to provide a code for multiple teacher managed offenses: “The act of not completing a consequence or sanction assigned by a teacher or multiple teacher managed offenses.”

Suggestions for changes to the Progressive Discipline Plans were submitted by administrators and members of the committee. Each suggestion was reviewed and changes made. The committee is currently reviewing the staff survey conducted in June for additional suggestions and changes.

​The most requested changes to date are listed below (these changes are already reflected in the revised ​documents). Throughout July 2017, the committees will review the staff survey and implement additional changes based on the feedback/suggestions. Approximately 170 school staff members completed the survey in June 2017. The final progressive discipline plans for the 2017-18 school year will be completed by July 30, 2017.

Elementary revisions:
· Hit / Kick / Push – Each elementary version will have two consequence progressions for this infraction. One progression for Hit/Kick/Push towards staff and one progression for Hit/Kick/Push towards a student. The consequences will be different and more severe for Hit/Kick/Push towards staff.

Secondary revisions:
· Profanity - Each secondary version (middle and high) will have two consequence progressions for this infraction. One progression for Profanity towards staff and one progression for Profanity towards a student. The consequences will be different and more severe for Profanity towards staff.
· Theft/Larceny and Stolen Property infractions – The consequence progressions for both of these level 2 offenses will be the same based on requests from school administration.

Early College High School Update

Charleston County School District’s Early College High School will open its doors on August 17, 2017 to start the 2017-18 school. CCSD was able to present to the board that Vanessa Denney will be the director for ECHS, and the enrollment for the first class at the school will be 100 students.

Staff members have been hired for all academic areas - Math, Science, Social Studies, and English/Language Arts. The students will be offered the following courses this year: Biology 1, Honors Biology 1, English 1, English 2, World Geography, Honors World Geography, Algebra 1, Geometry.

More information about the confirmed initial class:

Ethnicity

% of Applications

% of Acceptances

Asian

1%

1%

Black or African American

57%

57%

Hispanic/Latino

7%

13%

Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander

1%

3%

Two or More Races

2%

3%

White

31%

23%

AVID

The Board of Trustees received an update from the Executive Director of Career and Technology Education (CTE), Rich Gordon, about the installation of AVID (Advancement Via Individual Determination) at CCSD’s Early College High School for the 2017-18 school year. AVID is a program used to help students develop their learning, study, and academic behavioral skills, which are essential to success in rigorous coursework. AVID also acts as a catalyst for schools to develop a culture of college readiness for all students across the campus.

AVID is in place at five more CCSD schools: Baptist Hill Middle High, Haut Gap Middle, Morningside Middle, St. John’s High, and Simmons-Pinckney. The district’s Learning Services Division will continue to monitor the progress and impact of AVID at these five schools, along with ECHS, throughout the 2017-18 school year.

The cost for the six schools’ AVID membership fees, teacher training, and school resources cost is $72,139.00; that amount is covered by federal funds received from Title II and Education and Economic Development Act. The salaries for AVID teachers are funded by the district’s General Operating Fund.

Policy BID - Board Members Compensation

The Board of Trustees approved the second reading of a revision of Policy BID by a 4-2-1 vote (one abstained, two were absent) to allow for county BOT members to receive an annual salary that is 40% of the minimum base salary of a first-year teacher in the 2017-18 school year (~$14,000). The BOT Chair would receive an extra $1,000. The revised policy will also provide Constituent District Board members with a supplemental salary that is 20% of the minimum base salary of a teacher in the 2017-18 school year (~$7,200), with each Constituent District Board chair receiving an additional $500.

There will be no change to the $25 stipend county BOT members receive per meeting, nor the $15 stipend Constituent District Board members receive per meeting.
A decision on how the increase (which fund) will be financed has not been reached at this time.